Re: [PATCH v3 2/5] read-cache: submodule add need --force given ignore=all configuration

From: Claus Schneider <claus.schneider@eficode.com>
Date: Jan 16, 2026, 16:07 UTC
Message-ID: <CA+GP4bpwMui5RT9ixo8iWyZ6XZDw3GnYhvgiqVmRq8dW7yo5RQ@mail.gmail.com>
In-Reply-To: <f021269b-c89c-41c8-aa08-2ec2443ac7e8@app.fastmail.com>

Thanks for feedback. Well noted and it will be reworded like this:

.... A message is printed (like ignored files) guiding the user to use the --force flag if the user explicitly wants to update the submodule reference.

The reason for the change is to support branch tracking in submodules
 with configuration `submdule.<name>.branch` or similar workflows where the
user is not interested in tracking each update of the sha1 in the submdule.
You can additionally set `submodule.<name>.ignore=all` and the
`git status`will state nothing and, with this patch, the `git add`
does not either - as
the default behaviour. This patch changes the workflow to a more logical
behaviour and similar to workflow for ignored files.

The patch gives more scenarios for submodules to be used effectively with less friction similar to the "repo" tool. A submodule can be added for many different reasons than a hard dependency. It can be added as loosely coupled dependencies whereas the user wants the latest based on the configuration `submoule.<name>.branch`, but are not interested to track each commit in the `super-repo`. Currently it gives friction of handling conflicts between branches even the sha1's are fast-forward and the user just wants the latest in any way. A developer can still add a sha1 explicitly to track updates. ...

// Claus

On Thu, Jan 15, 2026 at 4:43 PM Kristoffer Haugsbakk <kristofferhaugsbakk@fastmail.com> wrote:

Show 35 quoted lines

>
> On Wed, Jan 14, 2026, at 08:47, Claus Schneider(Eficode) via GitGitGadget wrote:
> > From: "Claus Schneider(Eficode)" <claus.schneider@eficode.com>
> >
> > Submodules configured with ignore=all are now skipped during add operations
> > unless overridden by --force and the submodule path is explicitly specified.
> >
> > A message is printed (like ignored files) guiding the user to use the
> > --force flag if the user has explicitely want to update the submodule
> > reference.
> >
> > The reason for the change is support submodule branch tracking or
> > similar and git status states nothing and git add should not add either
> > as a default behaviour. The workflow is more logic and similar to regular
> > ignored files even the submodule is already tracked.
> >
> > The change opens up a lot of possibilities for submodules to be used
> > more freely and simular to the repo tool. A submodule can be added for many
>
> s/simular/similar/ ? Although the sentence doesn’t quite make sense to
> me. Well I’m unfamiliar with the domain anyway. ;)
>
> > more reason and loosely coupled dependencies to the super repo which often
>
> s/more reason/more reasons/ ?
>
> > gives the friction of handle the explicit commits and updates without
>
> s/handle/handling/
>
> > the need for tracking the submodule sha1 by sha1.
> >
> > Signed-off-by: Claus Schneider(Eficode) <claus.schneider@eficode.com>
> > ---
> >[snip]